Blackwell Reference Online

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The term ‘Daco-Thracian’ refers to the * Indo-European language or languages of peoples collectively referred to by Classical writers as ‘Thracians’ and who, from at least the 7th c. BC, occupied much of SE Europe from eastern Hungary to the Black Sea south of the Danube and to the Aegean Sea. Their territory included eastern Serbia, much of present-day Romania, the whole of Bulgaria, the Aegean coast from the Axios river to the Bosporus, and the northern Aegean islands of Thasos, Samothrace and Lemnos. The Thracians also crossed into NW Anatolia. Other terms used with reference to some of the ‘Thracian’ peoples include Dacians (Latin Daci , Greek Dakoi ), Moesi (Greek Moisoi ) and Getae (Greek Getai ). It is not clear how far these terms denote distinct tribes or groups or whether their undoubtedly related forms of speech are best regarded as dialects of one and the same language or as separate languages, or, in either case, how many varieties can be identified. Views among specialists are sharply divided and it seems advisable to leave the matter open. While recognizing that, on one interpretation, Dacian is a variety of Thracian, we shall, for the sake of convenience, adopt the generic term ‘Daco-Thracian’, and, following widespread practice, reserve the term ‘Dacian’ for the language or dialect spoken north of the Danube, in present-day Romania and eastern Hungary, and ... log in or subscribe to read full text